The Nigeria Broadcasting Commission (NBC) has suspended the license of Daar Communication Plc, promoter of AIT and RAY POWER until further notice.
The shutdown was announced on Thursday evening by the Director General of NBC, Modibbo Kawu. He said the action was taken for failure of the broadcasting station to abide by the broadcasting code.
According to a press briefing on the suspension at the NBC Headquarters in Abuja, Mr Kawu accused AIT/Raypower of broadcasting “divisive comments” on s social segment of “Kakaaki” programme, tagged, “Kakaaki Social”, where he alleged inciting comments such as, “Nigeria is cursed, we declare independent state of Niger Delta”, “Nigeria irritates me”, “this country is gradually Islamizing” and other similar slogans were used without editorial control in breach of the broadcast code.
The DAAR Chairman, High Chief Raymond Dokpesi during a one man protest to the National Assembly alleged that his affiliation with the opposition PDP is the real reason for the NBC’S action.
“I greet you and welcome you to the premises of DAAR Communications Plc headquarters today as witnesses to the high handedness of government in deploying all instruments of power to threaten, intimidate and harass our media organization for my affiliation with the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the government’s perceived bias by our stations in holding government, public officers and people in positions of power accountable to the people of Nigeria,” he said.
Also reacting to the suspension, Fred Nwabufo, a public affairs analyst, described the action of the NBC as ”wrong and illegal”, adding that it is a clamp down on free speech.
“It is a fascist approach and an illegal act as well. The Director- General of NBC is a supporter of the APC government and this is a way of clamping down freedom of speech. They are trying to immediate AIT and muzzle down on free speech”. He said
